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From Philippines to Singapore: Alice Guo probe spotlights ‘domino effect’ of transnational crime
Zhang Jie, one of Guo’s alleged associates, is a Singaporean national who purportedly helped in her escape from the Philippines last year
Sam Beltran
Published: 6:00pm, 16 Jan 2025
Singapore authorities have launched an investigation into former Philippine mayor Alice Guo, accused of espionage and links to illegal gaming operations, in coordination with Manila – a development analysts say underscores the growing regional challenge of combating transnational crime.
The Singapore Police Force told local newspaper The Straits Times last week that it was working with Philippine authorities on the case due to the alleged involvement of Guo’s associates in the city state.
The force said it would deal with the suspects firmly “in accordance with our laws” should it receive “credible evidence” of their alleged offences, adding, “We do not tolerate anyone who may have committed crimes overseas and will take firm action against them if we have sufficient grounds.”
Guo, the embattled ex-mayor of Bamban town in Tarlac province, has faced accusations of being a Chinese spy and having links to illegal gaming operations in the Philippines that local authorities say are involved in human trafficking and money laundering.
She fled the country in July last year after being grilled by a Senate investigation and was later arrested by Indonesian authorities in Tangerang in August.
Philippine officials in hot water over selfies with fugitive mayor Alice Guo
She evaded Philippine authorities amid continued Senate hearings in July, reportedly travelling to Malaysia by boat first before flying to Singapore from Kuala Lumpur on July 21, where she stayed for a month, and then travelled to Batam in Indonesia by ferry on August 18.
Guo was first spotted by Indonesian authorities in Batam, where Singaporean Zhang Jie allegedly booked hotel rooms for her and her companions.
Zhang is alleged to be the president of Lucky South 99, a Philippine offshore gaming operator (Pogo) in Porac that was raided by law enforcement in June. Authorities said there was evidence that scam activities, torture and human trafficking were all occurring at the compound.
Zhang reportedly booked four rooms at a local hotel in Batam for Guo and her group for three days. Guo’s companions – Sheila Guo, a supposed sister of hers, and Cassandra Ong, also linked to Lucky South 99 – were also caught by authorities on the Indonesian island.
Wu Duanren, a former Chinese police officer wanted in Beijing, has been described by Philippine lawmakers as the “big boss” of Pogos in the country and is also alleged to be an associate of Guo in Singapore.
The Singapore Police Force confirmed to the media that it was working with Philippine authorities on the investigation into Zhang and Wu.
Alice Guo’s sister Sheila Guo and Cassandra Ong in the custody of Indonesian authorities. Photo: Instagram / @hontiverosrisa
A Philippine Senate investigation in August revealed that, in 2019, Guo co-founded Baofu Land Development with Zhang Ruijin and Lin Baoying, who leased the Bamban property that housed the raided Pogo hub linked to Guo. Lin was later sentenced in Singapore to 15 months in prison for money laundering and forgery offences.
Also in August, Philippine law enforcement agencies jointly filed multiple counts of money laundering against Guo and 35 others before the Department of Justice.
The Anti-Money Laundering Council alleged that Guo and her co-conspirators laundered more than 100 million pesos (US$1.8 million) in proceeds from criminal activities, which led to the freezing of dozens of bank accounts and other assets linked to Guo.
Enrico Gloria, an assistant professor of political science at the University of the Philippines and a doctoral student at Tsinghua University in Beijing, said it was “unsurprising” that Singapore police were now getting involved in the case of Guo and her associates.
Gloria added that reports of Zhang’s companies and properties registered in Singapore would naturally draw the interest of the city state’s law enforcement.
“This development reaffirms what has become increasingly clear: Pogos and transnational crimes, which have proliferated in the Philippines, operate through extensive networks across Southeast Asia,” Gloria said.
The Singapore Police Force has confirmed that it is working with Philippine authorities on the investigation into Zhang Jie and Wu Duanren. Photo: Reuters
Chester Cabalza, president of the International Development and Security Cooperation think tank, told This Week in Asia that the case highlighted the interconnectedness of members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, reflecting the ease in which crime could cross borders.
“It’s like a domino effect that whatever transnational crime that would happen in Manila would ceaselessly affect Singapore and other cities in the region,” Cabalza said.
Cabalza added that transnational crimes were committed with ease now due to a transborder world, with emerging technologies and rapid financial transactions enabling the globalisation of crimes.
“This way, even criminals have easy contacts with their counterparts abroad due to easy migration access and borderless travels,” he said.
Gloria noted that the transnational nature of these crimes – encompassing activities such as human trafficking, money laundering and scams – required a “coordinated and cooperative approach among law enforcement agencies across the region”.
“Effective collaboration is essential to address the scale and complexity of these operations,” Gloria told This Week in Asia.
The stakes were high for countries including Singapore and the Philippines in not only bringing perpetrators to justice, but also in understanding and dismantling the infrastructure of these criminal networks, he added.
“By working together, Southeast Asian nations can take significant strides towards eradicating these illegal activities and mitigating their impact on regional stability and security,” he said.
